Work for Peace and Justice

Work for peace and justice, so that all beings may be happy.

Beyond Vietnam, April 4, 1967—Speech by Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr.

I downloaded the following from here: http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/45a/058.html

Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence
By Rev. Martin Luther King
4 April 1967

Speech delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., on April 4, 1967, at a meeting of Clergy and Laity Concerned at Riverside Church in New York City

Non-judgment day is near

bumper sticker

The higher power I believe in is not one of judgment. The higher power I believe in believes in the power of love, and seeks not to travel nor to dwell on the avenues of fear.

The Earth and Human Beings On the Cosmological Scale

On the cosmological scale human beings and the Earth are very small, and precious. I hope humanity will live to see a day when all people and the earth will be treated well. People and the planet deserve to be treated well. Really - does anyone deserve to be treated badly?

Earlier tonight I was sitting outside enjoying the wonderful warm weather and the light misty drizzle, when I noticed a star (maybe Sirius) peeking out from behind the clouds. I mentioned this to someone near me, which provoked a great conversation about cosmology. We talked about the relative size (mass) of human beings and the planet Earth in comparison to the Universe.

The Sun is one of a billion stars in the Milky Way. The galaxy is one of billions in the Universe.

The Sun comprises over 99% of the mass of the solar system - Jupiter, 2.5 times the mass of all of the other planets combined, takes up the bulk of the rest the rest of the mass.

That makes the Earth very small. And that makes human beings very very small.

And so it is important to remember that sometimes the best gifts come in small packages. I think that's a good way to think about people.

(We also talked quite a bit about society, politics and economics, and how necessary change is - considering the many serious ongoing injustices in the world today, including the fact that one billion human beings suffer from chronic structural hunger.)

The photo is of the peak of Mount Rainier peeking out above clouds, from September 2009.

For a bit of sardonic humor, below is the Galaxy Song, from Monty Python's The Meaning of Life, on YouTube:

Heaven on Earth

Why should we, as human beings, settle for anything less than heaven on Earth?

I don't believe in the Christian model of Heaven and Hell. Did Jesus really teach such an idea? Instead of an "after-life" consisting of either one or the other Heaven or Hell, I believe that life, this life, this existence here and now, has the potential to be Heaven, or Hell. In terms of after-life - I think that's largely up to us as individuals in terms of the dispersal of our soul-force.

Instead of an eternal "after-life," I believe that we, as individuals, are the arbiters of our spiritual destiny. So, I believe in re-incarnation. I believe that after death there is choice as to whether or not to re-incarnate, so that the karmic journey in life may be continued.

I do not believe in a conscious after-life. I do believe in the eternal human spirit - the soul - however, and I believe that the true manifestations of heaven, and/or hell, occur here, on Earth, incarnate.

So, I am trying to envision an Earth that is downright heavenly. Why not? Why not work for the creation of a world that is truly just, equitable, peaceful, uplifting, tolerant of personal diffferences, consensual, cooperative, open, honest, inclusive, nonviolent and truthful?

I believe that we are spiritual beings. You don't have to believe in God to believe that we, as humans, are spiritual beings. It will probably necessitate having or believing in some sort of a higher power - even if that power is the State (as in government,) or the neighbor's vicious barking dog (I wouldn't recommend these as higher powers), or your family, or community, or, as I prefer, all of existence and nature. (Without going into detail about the exact nature of my spiritual beliefs, I'm pretty much a planet worshipper.)

To create a "Heaven on Earth" will take a lot of hard work! But it will be worth it. And it will also be fun work. Because the joy is in the journey. Really there can be no culmination in a "heavenly" end. The work will be ongoing. The work will never be finished. So it damn well better be enjoyable. Or else what's the point?

Aligning of the Souls

this is cross posted from OlyBlog:

The Aligning of the Souls gathering was great. Many stories, prayers - and jokes - were shared amongst the participants. The gathering kicked off last night (Wednesday night) with a potluck meal and the sharing of prayers and stories relating to the topic of healing and peace in the wake of the horrible events of September 11, 2001. Some people sang songs or read poems, some people told stories and shared wisdom, everyone listened.

This morning the gathering continued at dawn (Thursday morning, September 11, 2008) with the commencement of a day long continuous heart beat drum rhythm. We prayed for peace and healing as the cool and foggy air and mist of dawn gradually gave way to a brilliantly blue sunny and cloudless September Eleventh day. A ceremonial fire was lit in a very special outdoor fire place. The fire burned throughout the day, carefully observed, attended and listened to.

Many wonderful prayers were shared. I often times wish that I had recordings after such events, because it would be good to remember and know the specifics of what people said. However, although I may not remember the specific words, the feelings are very present - and I know they will always remain so, with me. The feelings will stay true to the original intent and meaning of the words. (Maybe this is how de ja vu works - i.e. specific emotional memories trigger thought memories.) It was a full day and night of remembrance and holding the hope of healing and peace in a vigilant way. It was a great experience and I am glad that I participated.

The theme of the gathering was Living on the Bridge from Fear to Courage. It was relevant both in a societal sense and also on a personal level, for me. I appreciate approaching the horrible events of 9/11 and the following disasters from this perspective. Moving from fear to courage: how can we learn from fear - acknowledge it and understand it - and choose, separately, to act, instead - not out of fear, but out of courage, and love. Fear can knock me down. But community can give me courage - song and dance, sharing, holding vigil and vigilant drumming, awareness and consciousness and conscientiousness raising, conversation, intentionality - these can further the cause of courage and give me (and perhaps you too) the strength to act despite fear - or to, even better, eclipse fear entirely, or even better yet, to replace fear with love, pure and simple.

Again, many people shared many beautiful and deeply meaningful stories. I wish I could share them all with you! But I will share a couple of my prayers, which I shared with some who were there. First off, in the morning I asked the sun for strength to carry us and help us through the long day of presence, to stand by us in vigilant witness - witness to and of the will for healing, and of the will for peace.

Another prayer that came to me was to send positive regards to all of the people whom are in positions of power, people in places like Congress (and public officials generally), in the media, and in other positions of power (spiritual, religious, etc.) to ask them, and support them (lend them courage), to ask the appropriate and perhaps difficult questions about the horrible events of September 11th, 2001. For example, when did the US Government stop providing Osama bin Laden with material support to conduct his activities? ... I prayed (and I continue to do so) for those people (in positions of power) - and I send them my positive regards in hope that they will have the courage to stand up and begin to ask these important questions.

I also prayed for peace and healing and relief for those whom continue to suffer as a result of the horrible attacks of September 11th, 2001 (and any other related incidents as well as any incidents which are similar in nature.)

Many people died. Many families lost loved ones. I pray for those who lost family and friends. I pray that they may find healing and peace - and even perhaps somehow come out of this experience as somehow improved - better somehow, as a result of all this horrible pain and loss, this tragedy and madness.

So, out of such a terrible event such as the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, it may be something beautiful can be birthed. A phoenix may, out of the ashes, rise. I pray for that. I pray for the birth of a culture of true peace and respect, based in love (not fear.)